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Spain lifted the FIFA World Cup 2026 title after substitute Ferran Torres scored in extra time to give his side a 1-0 lead over a 10-man Argentina in the final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on Sunday.
Torres broke the deadlock in the 106th minute, firing past Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez after Nico Williams kept a long cross in play and headed the ball into the striker's path. The goal was Torres' first of the tournament and came with Spain registering their 20th attempt of the match.
The forward had entered the contest as a second-half substitute in the 62nd minute, replacing Mikel Oyarzabal, with Spain's pressure finally yielding a breakthrough after dominating much of the contest.
Spain had earlier thought they had taken the lead in extra time when Nico Williams found the net, but the goal was ruled out after the referee penalised Mikel Merino for fouling Nicolas Otamendi in the build-up.
The first period of extra time ended with Spain firmly in control, having outshot Argentina 19-0 despite the score remaining goalless until Torres' strike. Argentina were also reduced to 10 men, forcing coach Lionel Scaloni to adopt a defensive approach by replacing forward Julián Álvarez with defender Marcos Senesi in the 102nd minute.
Spain also made changes during extra time, introducing Martín Zubimendi for Rodri and Eric Garcia for Aymeric Laporte in the 99th minute as they looked to maintain control of the contest.
The final had become only the fourth FIFA World Cup title match to remain scoreless after 90 minutes, joining the 1994 Brazil-Italy, 2010 Spain-Netherlands and 2014 Germany-Argentina finals.
Torres broke the deadlock in the 106th minute, firing past Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez after Nico Williams kept a long cross in play and headed the ball into the striker's path. The goal was Torres' first of the tournament and came with Spain registering their 20th attempt of the match.
The forward had entered the contest as a second-half substitute in the 62nd minute, replacing Mikel Oyarzabal, with Spain's pressure finally yielding a breakthrough after dominating much of the contest.
Spain had earlier thought they had taken the lead in extra time when Nico Williams found the net, but the goal was ruled out after the referee penalised Mikel Merino for fouling Nicolas Otamendi in the build-up.
The first period of extra time ended with Spain firmly in control, having outshot Argentina 19-0 despite the score remaining goalless until Torres' strike. Argentina were also reduced to 10 men, forcing coach Lionel Scaloni to adopt a defensive approach by replacing forward Julián Álvarez with defender Marcos Senesi in the 102nd minute.
Spain also made changes during extra time, introducing Martín Zubimendi for Rodri and Eric Garcia for Aymeric Laporte in the 99th minute as they looked to maintain control of the contest.
The final had become only the fourth FIFA World Cup title match to remain scoreless after 90 minutes, joining the 1994 Brazil-Italy, 2010 Spain-Netherlands and 2014 Germany-Argentina finals.
